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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23663236">Lyin' Awake</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/tyllernol/pseuds/tyllernol'>tyllernol</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Sonic the Hedgehog (2020)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, I'll add tags later, M/M, Panic Attacks, Stobotnik, but i got a migraine halfway through writing this, ending is a bit sudden, first fic here, robotnik has trauma but that's okay!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 23:55:35</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,393</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23663236</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/tyllernol/pseuds/tyllernol</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>He should've known it would've happened soon enough, he couldn't remember the last time that he had been cornered by his inner turmoil.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dr. Eggman | Dr. Robotnik/Agent Stone</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>95</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Lyin' Awake</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi! This is my first fic here, and is indeed the first actual fic i've written in almost three years oops. That's okay! There's always room for improvement, and i'm happy with this :D <br/>Comments are appreciated!!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Doctor Robotnik was a man who feared nothing. He laughed at the face of Death, he defied all odds. He had no reason to be scared, not when he had an arsenal of military-grade drones at his disposal. Anything that even dared to harm him could be decimated withing milliseconds. He was safe.</p>
<p>That was, he was safe from anything physical. </p>
<p>There were, however, things that could hurt him in other ways. These weren't physical things- oh no! These were the awful, dreaded, loathed mental things, the things that burrowed their way into his mind and ate away any parts that said he didn't deserve it, the segments that told him he was okay, that he could get through the day. Thankfully, he WAS able to get through the day. But unluckily for him, these mental parasites had been planted deep into his brain- so deep, in fact, that it sprang up when he was unconscious. </p>
<p>This wasn't anything new. Ever since he had been four years old, stumbling out of that flaming inferno of a house he once called home, the night terrors had been prevalent. His father, who had caused the fire and was much too heavy for anyone, much less a four-year old, to carry, was left to burn to death that night. Forty-one miserable years later, he was still able to hear his screaming. </p>
<p>Ivo's mind was very complex and precise, and stored away any and all information he could get his hands on. That unfortunately included childhood trauma, which he kept locked away in the deepest, darkest areas of his mental capacities. The other areas, which were accessible at any point in time, almost always allowed him to ignore that metaphorical corner of self-loathing. misery, and hatred. There was one key word, however: almost. Nights where it was too quiet, when he had drank too much coffee and was therefore denied the sweet release of unconsciousness, those were the times where the monsters hidden there would come out.</p>
<p>He should've known it would've happened soon enough, he couldn't remember the last time that he had been cornered by his inner turmoil.</p>
<p>- - - </p>
<p>It had been another late night, and he was working tirelessly at a drone. The government had asked for very specific requirements, some of which contradicted one another. Nonetheless, Robotnik was very precise and careful with the programming he provided, knowing very well the punishment the government would enforce if he didn't meet their expectations- besides, working on one thing more often than not gave him encouragement to work on another project that had been pushed aside.</p>
<p>Tonight, however, he found that his mind kept wandering, leaving him unfocused and distracted. He had found himself wandering the halls of his cerebral library, grazing over any topic he could find. He had to snap himself out of this trance several times, only to find he hadn't gotten any work done since the last time he had snapped out of his trance. Upon realizing he would get nothing done (and a glance at a clock on his monitor, which read 03:42), he wearily stood from his desk, several loud pops and a pained grunt emanating from the tired Doctor. He then managed to drag himself to his personal quarters, which expanded out directly from the lab (Robotnik had found himself staying up late and even passing out while working more times than he would ever admit, so he found these were very convenient. He had (reluctantly) decided to lend Stone a room extended off from another part of the lab, which he had accepted with a bright smile and a 'Thank you, Doctor!'). Once he had accomplished the simple tasks of changing into a new pair of clothes and brushing his teeth, he allowed himself to finally, FINALLY , relax back into the cloud of down and silk he called his bed. A long, satisfied sigh was drawn out from him, and he settled back to indulge in some well-deserved shut-eye.</p>
<p>....Only to find that sleeping was the last thing his caffeine-fueled body wanted to do. The aching exhaustion in his bones willed him to fall asleep, wanted him to just snatch forty winks while he had the time, but the java juice coursing through his body held strong and simply refused. So there he laid, eyes partially open, staring at the ceiling. Well, he decided, if my stupid brain won't let me sleep, I'll think. It's still being productive.</p>
<p>That was only the start of it. At this time, he wasn't expecting to not expect something, so after a long while of actual work-related thinking, those wretched terror-bearing demons had crept their way into his thoughts very slowly. It had started out with small thoughts, examples being 'I wonder why everything had turned out this way.' to 'Would it have been better if he had still been here?' to a very sudden 'I deserved this." The unexpected, abrupt change in his mental atmosphere had shocked him, but that wore off quickly. What didn't wear off, and plagued his mind, in fact, was the statement itself. When had he let those doors open up? That didn't matter now, the seed was already planted and was starting to bloom.</p>
<p>Robotnik had found himself slowly falling down the rabbit-hole, very treacherously slow, the words coming from that negative, black void very prominent- Why, if they were visible, they'd be bold!- to make him all the more miserable. He didn't notice his own pale, infirm hands gripping his heavenly blankets, the one thing that he had trusted enough to cry into, every single damned time this happened to him. Those drip-dropping tears hadn't fallen yet, but were still very present in his pained, blue eyes, threatening to spill out and ruin him. He had just wanted to sleep, why had it evolved into this? He wanted someone to reach out to him, to tell him it was okay, to assure him and help him come down from this ever-worsening panic attack.  His chest flt as if it was on fire, and his lungs were shriveling up with every second that passed. He couldn't breathe, why was it so damn hard to breathe?</p>
<p>If everything wasn't enough already, his brain fed him one last cruel thought: Nobody will ever love you. You're going to die alone.</p>
<p>That sent the tears shooting down his cheeks, and his already-tight chest seemed to compress in more, which gave the dancing, inky particles in his vision an invitation to spread and consume his vision. He could faintly hear himself hyperventilating, but it sounded far off, like he was underwater. He was going to die, he was sure of it, and nobody would be here to help him.</p>
<p>He was plunged into darkness, surrounded by everyone and everything that had troubled him. Why were they laughing? Why were they pointing? Why was everyone pointing at him? Oh god, just make it STOP!  </p>
<p>Everything came to a sudden stop when he saw his agent, his dear Agent Stone. Of all the looks he had been cast here, Stone's was the one that had feared him the most. He was disappointed in him. "You really thought that anybody would stay by your side? How very pathetic of you, Doctor," Stone spat in his face, reducing Robotnik slowly to nothing but a shaking, scared, small little boy while the insults spewed from his mouth like Stone was a glorious fountain. He could audibly hear himself crying, whimpering so pathetically all the while. He was a man of strength, you'd think he was able to battle this.</p>
<p>Stone lunged at him, hands grabbing at his shoulders and oh, when did they turn into claws? His insults morphed into ugly, horrible slurs, ones that struck at Robotnik like daggers. He wanted to get away from this nightmare, and did so the only way he knew how: he started thrashing, trying to slash at this bastard of a monster, who just so happened to come in the form of his assistant. He managed to land a hit on this beast, which gave Ivo the opportunity to attack at it more- slashing, screaming, retaliating, trying to get away. Then it managed to pin him, and he wasn't having it. He began thrashing wildly, a shrill scream ripping itself from his throat as he sobbed and fought. His poorly maintained body, while being steadfast in almost any scenario he had been presented with before, finally gave out, and he was left with strangled sobs and labored breathing. He didn't want to die yet, but had almost accepted it- after all, who would miss him when he was gone? They only mourn for the loss of a brilliant mind, not the person equipped with it. </p>
<p>The weight on top of him didn't lift for awhile, but it did keep him held close in its arms. He wasn't sure when the hands moved from being on his back to rubbing at his shoulders and playing with his damp hair, and he certainly didn't know when someone's voice was able to clear his vision and allow him some sight. He closed his eyes, trying to focus on what was being said. </p>
<p>"...down, sir.. Relax, I've got you.." They mumbled to him in a low, hushed voice, the low tone vibrating through their chest and rumbling into Robotnik's. His fatigued body was still trembling, and he found himself clinging onto the other form tightly. "There we go, that's a start.. Just relax, I'm right here, okay? Just take some deep breaths for me." His body seemed to be on autopilot, just complying to what they said. His breaths were still short, but slowly grew deeper and longer every time his chest expanded. Once his lungs were able to get some proper oxygen to them, the stars behind his eyes slowly dispersed, and he was able to slowly open them. He was greeted by the sight of his ceiling, the room still dark as he had left it. The form above him, once given a glance, was none other than his nightmarish tormentor, his agent. He had Robotnik in a hug, essentially, just trying to ground him. His hand was softly carding through his hair, and he was whispering soft reassurances to him. His other hand was rubbing small circles into his shoulder, which Ivo found oddly felt nice. </p>
<p>It a long time for him to fully calm down, and when Stone decided he was calm enough, he pulled away to look at him. "..How are you feeling?" He took in Robotnik's expression, noting the fatigue and odd sense of clarity. He was just glad he wasn't going to land a punch on him again.</p>
<p>Ivo met his eyes, and in that moment the dark circles under his eyes were more prevalent. "Tired... Sad.." He replied softly, surprising himself with how blunt his words were. "..Why are you here?"</p>
<p>"My alarm went off, so i went to bring you coffee as i do every morning. You weren't at your desk, but i heard some.. alarming noises coming from your room, and I decided to check up on you,' he explained, brushing some stray salt and pepper strands of hair out of Ivo's face. "Does this happen often, sir?"</p>
<p>Robotnik found himself leaning into Stone's touch, letting out a sigh. "Not often, no, but it happens more than it should." His eyes slipped closed as his agent's broad hand held his tear-soaked face, feeling that after-crying exhaustion settle in. </p>
<p>"Why don't you lay down? I'll bring you some tea instead, and you can relax so you can sleep some. How does that sound?" Stone offered softly, smiling at the nod he earned. "I'm going to let go of you now, okay? I'll be back after I make the tea, I promise." He slowly began to untangle himself from Robotnik, who slowly leaned back into his pillows to look at his agent. He was slightly surprised to see him smiling softly at him, compassionately. He was dressed in a simple black tee, revealing his nice arms and neck. His sweats were also black, and Robotnik decided that he liked that color on him. </p>
<p>Said man got up slowly, "I'll be back in a moment, sir." He soon left the bedroom, heading towards the small kitchen stationed in his quarters. Stone knew the layout pretty well, considering he had cleaned his quarters several times upon Ivo's request, so when he got to the kitchen, he began brewing him some tea- lavender and chamomile, to be exact, Stone couldn't find any other teas in here.</p>
<p>Robotnik took this time to relax even more, thinking through everything. Out of every scenario he had come up with for a situation like this, this certainly hadn't been one of them, but frankly? He wasn't complaining. Instead? He was very confused still as to why Stone helped him. Why didn't he leave him to deal with it as everyone else had? He thought on that, only being snapped out of his thoughts by Stone knocking on the door frame to alert him of his presence. "Here's your tea, sir," he went over, gently setting it on a coaster on his nightstand. Robotnik instead opted to take it, relishing in the warmth against his palms. He inhaled slightly, closing his eyes as he allowed the scent to fill his body.</p>
<p>"You stay here and take the day off, I'll focus on the work today," Stone broke the silence, smiling at him. "Is there anything I can get or do for you?" </p>
<p>Robotnik opened his eyes after a moment, glancing up at him. "..Can you stay in here?"</p>
<p>That certainly had shocked the agent, but he nodded and smiled. "Of course, Doctor." He went over, shifting to sit at his feet. "...Beside me, I meant." Stone blinked at that, but did as requested.</p>
<p>"...And can you do the thing with your hand in my hair? That felt nice," Ivo added almost shyly, a bit embarrassed. Of course, Stone just replied with a smile and nod, bringing his hands up to his hair to gently run them through his hair, which the Doctor felt himself leaning into. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>....Perhaps those dark monsters that lurked deep within his mind ween't right, as he had so earnestly believed. Maybe, just maybe, everything would be okay.</p>
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